Outboard engine units have an external air intake port provided in an engine cover for taking in external air, one example of which is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. HEI-09-240588 (JP H09-240588 A).
FIG. 7 hereof is a view explanatory of the outboard engine unit 100 disclosed in JP H09-240588 A, in which an engine is covered with an engine cover 101. External air is introduced or taken in through an external air intake port 103, provided in a top cover 102, as indicated by arrow (1) and then supplied to the engine via an air intake passage 104, provided in the engine cover 102, as indicated by arrow (2). In the outboard engine unit 100, air having water mixed therein may sometimes be taken in, in which case it becomes necessary to supply only the air to the engine with the water removed from the air.
When air having water mixed therein has been taken in through the external air intake port 103, the water hits a vertical blocking plate 105 to be returned to outside of the outboard engine unit 100. Even in case some of the water gets over the vertical blocking plate 105, it falls down onto the air intake passage 104 provided under the external air intake port 103 and is then discharged through a water outlet port. In order to prevent water from entering beyond the vertical blocking plate 105, it is only necessary to increase the height of the vertical blocking plate 105. With the external air intake port 103, air intake passage 104, etc. provided in a vertical arrangement as shown in FIG. 7, it is possible to supply only air to the engine while preventing entry of water into the engine.
However, in the conventionally-known outboard engine unit 100, where the intake port 103, air intake passage 104, etc. are provided in a vertical arrangement, the intake port 103 and the air intake passage 104 have a great combined (or overall) height h, so that the outboard engine unit 100 would have a large dimension in its height direction (i.e., large height). But, some applications require an outboard engine unit having a small height, i.e. an outboard engine unit provided with an engine cover having a small overall height.